SpeciesStatusRange/HabitatLife HistorySpecial Concerns

Longnose Gar (Lepisosteus osseus)

Not Evaluated

Spawn late May or early June. Eggs hatch in 3-9 days, larvae attach to vegetation. Feed on small crustaceans and fish, reach sexual maturity after 3-6 years. Females can live up to 20 years, males up to 11 years. Eggs are poisonous.

None

Channel Catfish (Ictalurus punctatus)

Not Evaluated

Deep pools and runs over sand or rocks in rivers and lakes.

Spawn late spring in streams or rivers. Can reach 24 years of age being 13 pounds. Feed on all sorts of aquatic organisms.

Excellent sport fish.

Striped Bass (Morone saxatilis)

Not Evaluated

Marine but has runs up large rivers upstream to spawn. Channels of medium to large rivers during spring spawning runs, lakes, impoundments, and connecting rivers.

Anadromous, live in saltwater but spawn in freshwater. Spawn from April through June. 180,000-700,000 eggs. Eggs drift with current and hatch 2-3 days later. Feed on macroinvertebrates, shrimp, and small fishes. 1-10 pounds, 10-12 years of age.

Hybridizes with White Bass (Morone chrysops). Major sport fish.

Fathead Minnow (Pimephales promelas)

Not Evaluated

Muddy pools, creeks, and small rivers and ponds.

Spawn in late May or June, some spawn throughout summer. Feed on insects, crustaceans, algae, and detritus. Die after spawning at age 2, if they don't spawn could live to 4 years. 2-3 inches at adult.

Frequently used as baitfish so populations have been introduced in a lot of places.

White Sucker (Catostomus commersonii)

Not Evaluated

Spawn in April or May. Prefer gravel bottoms, eggs, up to 140,000, attach to gravel and hatch after 5-10 days. Feed on rotifers and algae then insects, crustaceans, snails, and clams. Selective feeders. Adults can reach 18-20 incheas and 3-4 pounds.

None

Black Bullhead (Ameiurus melas)

Not Evaluated

Pools, backwaters, and sluggish current. Soft substrate in creeks and small to large rivers, impoundments, oxbows, marshes, and ponds.

Spawn from April to July. Build saucer-shaped nests in heavy vegetation, eggs are deposited on nests. Provide oxygen to the eggs by fanning the water over them. Adults guard the nests. Feed on insects, crustaceans, mollusks, and plants. Tasebuds on their barbels which facilitate locating prey.

None

Walleye (Sander vitreus)

Not Evaluated

Lakes, pools, backwaters and runs of medium to large rivers. Clear water often near vegetation.

Spawn early spring, migrate up into streams and rivers- good flow and gravel bottoms desired. Do not build nests, eggs become attached to vegetation. Not a high survival rate, average is 5% survival. Feed on zooplankton when young but switch to small fishes when old enough. Can live up to 15 years and reach 17 pounds. Prefer turbid water.

None.

Lake Chubsucker (Erimyzon sucetta)

Not Evaluated

Spawn from March to July in bays and mouths of tributaries. Eggs are deposited across the bottom over submerged vegetation. Young stay in shallows until older. Feed on small crustaceans and insect larvae.

None

Yellow Bullhead (Ameiurus natalis)

Not Evaluated

Spawn early spring in May or June. Construct nests along the shoreline near a log or overhanging bank- adults guard nest and protect young. Feed on aquatic insects, mollusks, crustaceans and fish.

None

Brown Bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus)

Not Evaluated

Pools and slow rivers and streams. Impoundments, lakes, and ponds.

Spawn late spring, early summer. Construct nests by a log or rock. Parents guard the young and swim around together in an aggregation called a “pod.” Can live up to 6 years, may live longer. Grow 14-16 inches in length and 1-2 pounds.

None

River Redhorse (Moxostoma carinatum)

Not Evaluated

Rocky pools and swift rivers, impoundments.

Spawn from June to July along gravel shoals in rivers. Males construct and protect their nests. Feed primarily on mollusks and aquatic insects. Can be as large as 30 inches and 11 pounds.

None

Golden Shiner (Notemigonus crysoleucas)

Least Concern

Vegetated lakes, ponds, swamps, backwaters and pools of creeks. Small to medium rivers. Prefer clear and quiet water with a lot of aquatic vegetation.

May to August spawning in ponds and lakes, eggs are not guarded- attached to vegetation. Spawn at age 2 or 3. Feed on zooplankton, phytoplankton, and small insects. Can reach 10 inches in length, reach age of 8 or 9. School fish.

Valuable baitfish. Ranked 3rd most common fish in lakes and ponds.

Tadpole Madtom (Noturus gyrinus)

Not Evaluated

Rock, mud, or detritus bottomed pools and backwaters of creeks and rivers and lakes.

Spawn in June or July along the shore of lakes/ponds and in slow-moving streams. Deposit their eggs under logs, rocks, or any other cover. Feed primarily at night on small insects and crustaceans.

None

Central Mudminnow (Umbra limi)

Not Evaluated

Quiet areas of streams, sloughs, swamps, and other wetlands. Mud, small debris, and dense vegetation. Tolerant of low oxygen levels and extremes in water temperature.

Spawns in March or April in upstream, flooded areas. Guard nests that are on the underside of rocks or vegetation. Feed on ostracods, insects, mollusks, and crustaceans. Generalists. Live up to 4 years, reproduce at 2 years. Swim bladder can act as a lung.

None

Bowfin (Amia calva)

Not Evaluated

Spawn in May or June, male creates a nest and female deposits eggs- hatch after 8-10 days. Young attach to roots or logs for 7-9 days. Male actively guards nest and young. Can live up to 30 years of age, 2.5 to 3.5 pounds, 1.5-2 feet in length.

Confused with snakehead (Channa argus), which is a vicious invasive species.

Northern Pike (Esox lucius)

Not Evaluated

Clear vegetated lakes, quiet pools and backwaters, small to large creeks and rivers. Swamps, Marshes.

Spawn early spring in shallow marshes or flooded meadows. Eggs hatch after two weeks and feed on crustaceans and small insects, after enough growth they feed on small fish. Prefer shallow, weedy habitats. Can live up to 26 years and 50 pounds.

Popular sport fish.

Chain Pickerel (Esox niger)

Not Evaluated

Vegetated lakes, swamps, and backwaters and quiet pools of creeks and small to medium rivers.

Spawn in marshes and shallow bays in the spring. Eggs hatch in 6-12 days, reach sexual maturity at age 3 or 4. Some live to 8 or 9 years of age. Larvae feed on plankton and insects, then fish when big enough. 15-18 inches long, 1.5 pounds in size.

Popular sport fish.

Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides)

Not Evaluated

Lakes, ponds, swamps, backwaters and pools of creeks and small to large rivers. Usually near mud, sand, or vegetation.

Spawn in late spring or early summer. Choose smaller, weedier areas than smallmouth but act the same. Can live up to 15 years, exceed 20 inches and weight over 8 pounds.

One of the most popular sport fish. Two subspecies.

Smallmouth Bass (Micropterus dolomieu)

Not Evaluated

Clear, gravel bottom runs and flowing pools of small to large rivers. Shallow rocky areas of lakes.

Spawn in May or June over gravel or rocky bottoms in rivers. Male constructs a nest and guards it, acting very aggressively. Hatch in 2-4 days, leaving the nest after 2-3 weeks. Initially feed on crustaceans, then as they grow larger they switch to crayfish, insects and fish. Can live up to 15 years, reach 18-20 inches and can exceed 8 pounds. Prefer colder waters. Do not feed during winter.